A Long Voyage Home
by MysticPhantasy
Summary: Stuck 75,000 light years away from home, some of the crew of Voyager start to think it's time to start to find someone to spend the rest of their lives with. Harry Kim X OC. THIS IS AU. Chapter 9 up! Please Read & Review.
1. Chapter 1: Meet Miley

A Long Voyage Home

A Long Voyage Home

An AU Star Trek: Voyager Story

By MysticPhantasy

Chapter 1: Meet Miley Fitzpatrick

(Disclaimer: We do not own Star Trek: Voyager or its characters except for our OC Miley.)

The crew of the _Voyager_ had been trapped in the Delta Quadrant for the past month and the crew was still getting adjusted. Tom Paris set up a holodeck program that was a replica of a pool hall he frequented in Paris, France ironically. It was late at night when he and his best friend, Harry Kim walked out of the program after Harry lost 5 games in a row.

"Come on, Harry, you should've played one more round," Tom smirked.

"I know when I'm being swindled, Tom, I've had enough for one night. I'm just glad we weren't playing for rations or something."

"Well I'll make it up to you; I'll buy you a snack at the mess hall."

"Nice try, but you know Neelix doesn't charge," Harry replied.

"Well, I'll give you a handicap next time."

"I don't want any pity. I promise I'll win against you someday on my own skills."

"Well I'm still hungry, let's go get some food," Tom said leading his friend to the mess hall. When they walked in they saw that the room was mostly empty. There were only a few crewmembers, getting late dinners, and a few from the night shift getting an early breakfast. Neelix greeted them with a smile.

"Good evening gentlemen, I'm serving both breakfast and dinner right now, so take your pick."

"I'll have some scrambled eggs and sausage," Harry smiled.

"I'll take whatever everyone had for dinner tonight," Tom requested.

"Ok you're getting meat loaf and leeota root gravy then." Neelix turned to go back into the kitchen.

"Aww man," Tom whined.

"That's what you get. I know what's safe," Harry grinned. They went to look for a seat and noticed an officer sitting by herself. She looked humanoid but not of any species Harry had ever seen. She had long pointed ears with fur behind them, plus what looked like two small horns lining the center of her forehead. She had short black hair and it was straight. Her eyes were golden with brown pupils. She was deeply engrossed in whatever she was typing on her PADD. Her uniform suggested she was part of the engineering division.

"Hey Harry, do you know who she is?" Tom asked. Harry was captivated for a second, "Hello Tom to Harry, you there buddy?"

"Huh…oh no I don't know her," Harry replied. He walked over to her, "Excuse me, may we join you?"

The young officer looked up and blushed, "Um I'm sorry I have to go on my shift now," she got up and ran out the door as Neelix came back with Tom and Harry's food.

"That was weird," Tom commented.

"The leeola root gravy?" Neelix asked, "it tastes fine to me."

"Do you know who that ensign was?" Harry asked.

"Oh that's Ensign Fitzpatrick, I tried talking with her, but she's almost as closed off as Mr. Vulcan."

"Once again, Harry decides to crush on the impossible woman," Tom joked.

"What? I just saw her as long as you did and didn't even know her name at all. How can I be falling for someone I haven't even really met? You're being ridiculous."

"That doesn't stop love at first sight," Tom smirked sitting down with his food.

"You know maybe a friendly social guy like Harry is what the young lady needs!" Neelix suggested, making Harry blush more.

"Me? Social?"

"Sure Harry," Tom said, "I've helped you come out of that shell. Hopefully I'll help get rid of that squeaky clean image you have too. You're too good for your own good you know?"

"Can we just eat now please?" Harry begged.

"OK then," Tom said, then took Neelix aside, "Hey a week's worth of rations say that he'll ask her out in a month."

"You're on!" Neelix grinned.

XXX

After he was done with his breakfast for dinner, Harry returned to his quarters and decided to look up Ensign Fitzpatrick's personnel file. He found out her full name was Miley Fitzpatrick and she was half human. Her other half was Shamazar, a species Harry had never heard of, from a planet with the same name. Not only that, but she used to be a princess of the northern hemisphere on that planet, but gave up her royal title to be in Starfleet. Her father was an admiral that got involved politically with her homeworld and romantically with its northern hemisphere's queen. He has been permanently stationed there. She was actually in Harry's graduating class and valedictorian to his surprise. How had he never noticed her? He decided to correct that immediately. He left his quarters and headed for engineering. He found Lt. Carey there giving tasks for the night crew to take care of, "Hello Ensign. Can I help you?" he asked.

"I'm looking for Ensign Fitzpatrick, is she available?" Harry replied.

"She should be. She's been off duty for hours." Carey replied.

"Really? She said she was on the night shift."

"Nope. She'll be back first thing at 0600. Do you need her specifically because there are one or two officers I can spare if you're working on something."

"No that's ok. Thanks anyways. Good night, lieutenant," Harry said leaving engineering and feeling a little disappointed. He quietly returned to his quarters and went to bed.

XXX

The next morning Harry got up and went through his usual routine for getting ready for his shift. However, when he was finished, he had an hour left before he had to report to the bridge. So he decided since he had the time, he would go to engineering to find Miley. He found her at a workstation running a routine check on the bio-neural gelpacks. She was engrossed in her work and her back was towards him so she didn't notice his entrance. Harry put his hand on her shoulder to get her attention which startled Miley causing her to jump and actually meow loudly.

"Don't sneak up on me like that!" she shouted and then she turned and saw who it was and immediately blushed.

Harry blushed back, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

Miley stuttered, "Um…um it's ok. Is there something I can help you with?"

"Well I just wanted to know why you ran off like that last night. Tom and I don't bite," Harry replied. The mental image Miley got made her laugh, "What?" Harry asked.

"Nothing," Miley replied.

"Yeah and you lied about when your shift was," Harry added.

"Well, I…um…you see…I…I'm really shy around people. I'm sorry I lied."

"Well I hope you aren't shy for too long. We're all stuck here in the Delta Quadrant together. The only friends we're going to have are our shipmates for years to come most likely," Harry pointed out.

"Well I'll try not to be shy, but it will take me some time to get used to everything," Miley said.

"Well…after seeing you last night…I wanted to get to know you and be your friend," Harry said a little shyly.

"Me…why me?" Miley asked.

"Because you looked like you needed one," Harry said.

"I guess I'm so used to being alone, I didn't think I needed a friend," Miley replied.

"Well in the situation we're in, I think we all need as many friends as possible," Harry said.

"I think I would like that," Miley smiled, "After all I've always admired you," then she covered her mouth and blushed realizing what she said out loud.

"You admired me? Why? I don't think I'm _that_ special," Harry said.

"But I think you are…actually very smart and very fun. I've seen you interact with your friends at the academy and I admit there were times I were jealous of you."

"Why is that?" Harry asked.

"I guess because I wanted to be part of your group of friends, but I never had the courage to speak up or say anything so I just continued to study hard and concentrate on becoming the best person I could be," Miley said.

"Well I just started having a new group of friends. Why don't you join us the next time we all eat together?" Harry invited.

It didn't seem possible, but Miley blushed even more, "Thank you I think I shall."

"Great. 1900 hours tonight," Harry smiled.

"I'll be a little late, but I'll try to be there," Miley smiled back. Then Harry left and went to the bridge smiling the whole time. Miley went back to her work, but was smiling as well.

(A/N: And that's it for our first chapter on this one. Next chapter Harry officially introduces his new friend to Tom and B'Elanna. Please leave your reviews for us.)


	2. Chapter 2: The Dinner Date

Chapter 2—

Chapter 2—A Dinner Date

(A/N: Thanks to VisualIDentificationZeta for reading and enjoying our story.)

(Disclaimer: We don't own Voyager)

Harry arrived at the mess hall 15 minutes early for the dinner he had planned to introduce Miley to his friends. Tom and B'Elanna arrived right on time and sat down and they asked Neelix what was on the menu tonight.

"Davrot fritters, with Laurelian pudding for desert," Neelix smiled at the group, "Wasn't there supposed to be one more tonight?" he asked, looking at Harry.

"Yeah Miley…I mean Ensign Fitzpatrick was supposed to be here, but then again she told me she would be a little late."

"Already on a first name basis, Harry," Tom joked, "That's fast work for you, buddy."

"Well he has to follow the Starfleet rulebook on romance," B'Elanna replied.

"There's no such thing…there is the interspecies mating protocol, but don't even think about joking about that," Harry blushed.

"Well if there was a rulebook for romance you'd follow it to the letter, Starfleet," B'Elanna grinned back.

"How about I offer some appetizers while you wait," Neelix suggested.

"Sure," they all replied. After a while, Tom asked the computer what time it was. It reported that it was 1925, "I think you've been stood up, Harry," Tom said sympathetically.

"Don't let it get you down. Let's just all have a nice dinner," B'Elanna said encouragingly. A couple of minutes later, Miley entered the Mess Hall. She was wearing a strip of unstitched clothing that was wrapped around the waist with one end draped over her right shoulder, baring the midriff and her left shoulder. It was pink and gold in color. She was also wearing a jewel just below her lowest horn. It also appeared she had a tail that was moving freely and it had three golden rings on the tip of it.

She was wandering for a bit looking for Harry and the others and then Tom nudged Harry, "There she is Harry…she has a tail?"

"What?" B'Elanna and Harry turned to look at her and sure enough, she had a tail. Harry stood up and waved at her, "We're over here." She waves back and walks over shyly towards them.

"Hurry up, you're already 30 minutes late," B'Elanna said, "You're lucky we didn't leave already."

She rushes to the table and looks at B'Elanna, "I'm sorry lieutenant."

B'Elanna smiles, "It's okay and call me B'Elanna when we're off duty."

"Okay lieu…B'Elanna." Then she takes the seat next to Harry. Neelix came out with their food.

"Ah I'm glad you made it Miley," the Talaxian smiled at her and offered her a plate which she gladly took.

"So what kept you?" Tom asked.

"Sorry, but I was having trouble getting this stupid jewel to stick to my head."

"Well you didn't have to dress up, this was just a friendly dinner," Harry smiled at her.

"I didn't dress up. This is what I wear when I'm off duty. I don't really like wearing human clothing. It itches my fur too much."

"Well that clothing resembles the kind that people from India on Earth wear," Tom pointed out.

"Well…that's interesting. I think it's a coincidence," then she began to eat her food slowly, "I'm sorry if my tail took you by surprise."

"We didn't notice it before. Probably because when we first met you were sitting down and the table would have blocked the view," Harry asked.

"I also usually wrap it around my waist so it resembles a belt. That way it stays out of the way when I work."

"Can I ask why you've never eaten with anyone before this?" Tom asked.

After eating a couple of bites of food, she looks at Tom and replies, "I've always been extremely shy and I don't partake in group settings much."

"Well then why join Starfleet? Working in a group is very important," Harry asked.

"Because I didn't want to be a princess anymore. I wanted to live my own life and see something other than the northern hemisphere of Shamazar."

Harry spit out his drink, "You're a princess?"

Tom wiped his uniform, "Thanks for that. I needed a refill anyways."

"Well I _was_ a princess. I gave up my title to be in Starfleet."

"I thought every girl wanted to be a princess," B'Elanna joked.

"Every girl?" Harry and Tom gave B'Elanna a look.

"Well _almost_ every girl," Then the guys laughed at the mental image of B'Elanna dressed as a princess.

"What are you laughing at?" Miley asked out of curiosity.

"Can you imagine our chief engineer here in a dress and tiara?" Tom chuckled, causing B'Elanna to lightly punch him in the arm, causing Harry to laugh again.

"I think she would look good actually," Miley said seriously. B'Elanna gave her a dirty look, "What did I say something wrong?" Miley asked.

"I guess you haven't met very many Klingons or Half-Klingons," B'Elanna said.

"Well I only dealt with aliens that came to my homeworld on special occasions. So until I joined Starfleet, I didn't meet many people from other worlds."

About an hour later, Tom and B'Elanna left because they had the early shift the next day, but Harry and Miley remained since they both had the next day off. Harry decided to ask more about Shamazar.

"What can you tell me about your homeworld?" Harry asked out of curiosity. Miley took a sip of her drink and started to play with her pudding while thinking on how to respond to her question.

"Well the planet is split into two hemispheres, my mother is queen of the northern hemisphere and her sister is the queen of the southern hemisphere. Both work in harmony and we have great resources in dilithium and tritanium that we trade in exports. But it wasn't always that way. It took us over 100 years to join the Federation because my great-great-grandmother ruled with an iron fist and had no interest in alliances."

"Wow how did they deal with her?" Harry asked.

"When the people of Shamazar found that they could live very well as a Federation member, they literally stormed her main castle and took her and publicly humiliated her for a long period of time before beheading her. We had to wait two generations before the Federation would consider admitting our planet again. Fortunately the rest of my family wasn't evil. And that led to my father, a Starfleet admiral, meeting my mother and marrying her and retiring on Shamazar." Harry listened to her story with great interest and wanted to learn more, but it was getting late.

"Can I walk you back to your quarters?" Harry asked. She smiled and nodded and stood up. Harry offered his hand shyly which she accepted but nervously. Once their hands touched, all the nervous feelings left her body. When they arrived he let go of her hand, "Well good night Miley. Thanks for a fun dinner."

"Good night, Harry. I hope we can do this again later." Harry looked away for a moment, but then quickly kissed her on the cheek and then left. She entered her quarters blushing and her heart racing, "I think I can get to like this Harry Kim," she said to no one in particular.

(A/N: We hope you liked this chapter and look forward to the next one.)


	3. Chapter 3: Unexpected Arrivals

Chapter 3—Unexpected Arrivals

(A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long, we each got involved in our other individual fanfic projects but now we're ready to add more to this one.)

Harry woke up a little later than usual the next day, but he was smiling as he got ready for his shift. He felt that despite her tardiness, Miley was great company last night and he couldn't wait to see her again…unfortunately duty called and he had to report to the Bridge. When he arrived on the bridge and took his station, Tom looked back at him, "So how'd it go after B'Elanna and I left?" he asked.

"How'd what go?" Chakotay asked, his curiosity raised.

"His date with Ensign Fitzpatrick," Tom replied, which caused Tuvok to raise an eyebrow and Janeway to look back at Harry with a slight smile.

"Nothing happened that _you'd_ be interested in. We ate dinner, talked, and I walked her back to her quarters, then I went back to my own. I was a perfect gentleman," Harry replied.

"What nothing? She's a cute girl who was liking you. I know you don't want to go too far, but if you don't go far enough, she'll think you're not interested," Tom replied.

"You forget, she's sophisticated and like me she's the type to take things slow. Trust me I can tell," Harry said.

"But…" Tom started.

"Leave him alone, he has a good idea. Let him take it slow. We may be stuck here for a while, so rushing things wouldn't be a good idea," Janeway pointed out, then she turned to her console, "Bridge to Enginerring, B'Elanna, what's your progress on the warp core diagnostic?"

"We're doing fine and can give you warp speed within half an hour now," the chief engineer replied. Then she turned to Miley who was working at a neighboring station, "So are you gonna tell me what you and Harry did after Tom and I left?" she asked.

Miley responded, "Nothing really. We just sat and talked and then he walked me back to my quarters and gave me a kiss on the cheek before leaving."

"Ooh a kiss on the cheek," B'Elanna smiled, "Coming from Harry that is a big show of affection. I think he's starting to like you."

Miley started to blush, "You…you really think he likes me?"

"Yes I do. Harry isn't the type to kiss someone he doesn't like and he was willing to wait before you showed up," B'Elanna pointed out.

"Yeah I want to apologize but I really needed to wear my off duty stuff and wanted to look nice…plus the uniforms aren't that comfortable for me."

"I'm surprised, they're designed so that anyone who wears them can be comfortable in a range of environments," B'Elanna pointed out.

"Well I guess they weren't expecting someone from my world to join Starfleet," she smiled, "But I guess I'll have to get used to it."

XXX

Janeway had decided to go to her Ready Room to work on some reports since things on the bridge were slow so far. A few moments later, Chakotay left Tuvok in charge and went to join her.

"Good morning captain, here's the report from the night shift. Nothing major in this region it seems," Chakotay reported.

Janeway took a sip of her coffee and nodded, "Thank you commander. I was thinking at first that being stuck here in the Delta Quadrant meant that we would never be bored, but I guess the peace and quiet will do us some good."

"Yes it is a little nice, especially after our run-ins with the Vidiians and the Kazon."

"Maybe it will give the crew some time to catch up on their work because they are still learning to work together."

"We've done a good job so far I think," Janeway said.

"Yes I've been watching the crew interact in the Mess Hall and I noticed that several Starfleet and Maquis officers are forming friendships with each other," Chakotay smiled, "Even B'Elanna and Tom considering they would probably be the hardest to get along with at first glance. They've been hanging out with Harry a lot and now it seems they've added Ensign Fitzpatrick to their little group."

Janeway looked a little surprised, "Ensign Fitzpatrick you say? That's a pleasant surprise; she's one of the shyest people I've ever seen. That means there's hope for everyone on board I think."

"Bridge to captain," Tuvok interrupted on the comm. channel, "We're picking up an asteroid field that appears to be rich in dilithium. Shall we alter course?"

"Please do so lieutenant. If this pans out we could create a good reserve store for ourselves," Janeway said as she and Chakotay returned to the bridge.

"Report Ensign Kim," Chakotay said.

"It seemed to appear out of nowhere," Harry said, "We're not near a star system so the presence of a group of this many asteroids like this is very unusual and the fact that they're rich in dilithium makes me think that this isn't a natural organization."

"You mean someone moved the asteroids here in the middle of nowhere?" Janeway said.

"That seems to be the case," Harry said.

"If I may captain, it is a practice for merchants trying to hoard valuable commodities to bring them to empty parts of space to hide them. Only the ones with incredible resources however would be able to haul asteroids of this size and material," Neelix said.

"Are we reading any signals or artificial structures?" Chakotay asked.

"Not even a 'No Trespassing' sign," Harry said.

"Well open hailing frequencies, maybe someone's hiding out there," Janeway ordered. When Harry nodded she turned instinctively to the viewscreen that showed dozens of asteroids spinning in space, "This is Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Federation Starship _Voyager _to whoever may be in range. We have detected your asteroids and were wondering if some of the material may be open for trade." After a few minutes there was no reply.

"It doesn't look like anyone's home," Tom said.

"What do we do captain?" Chakotay asked, "We could go down there and start mining but what if whoever owns them comes back?"

"We aren't thieves Chakotay," Janeway reminded him, "We may just have to move on." Then Tuvok interrupted them again.

"I am detecting a half-dozen small vessels approaching the area. None of them are of identical design and two of them are being fired upon by the other four," he reported.

"We're being hailed," Harry said.

"Please….alien starship…help us!" a voice sounded on the comm. system.

"To the alien starship. Do not interfere or you will be fired upon as well," a second voice sounded.

"Break off your attack, we can help mediate this peacefully," Janeway ordered, but then she saw one of the two ships explode in a fireball.

"No choice. Shields up, Tom move us between the combatants. Maybe we can scare them off," Janeway ordered. When _Voyager_ moved as directed by its helmsman, the four attacking ships turned their attention to the mighty starship.

"Break off your attack or we'll be forced to return fire!" Janeway said as her bridge shook around her. When it shook again she nodded to Tuvok.

"Firing phasers on the nearest ship at low power," he said. They fired off the warning shot and it was enough to dissuade whoever was piloting it and their three companion ships retreated as well.

"Thank you whoever you are…can I trouble you for further assistance? My co-pilot and I are suffering from injuries and burns."

"We'll transport you to our sickbay and take your ship in tow," Janeway offered.

"Thank you. In exchange I'll let you have mining rights on one of the asteroids. I own them which is something my friends back there didn't seem to understand."

"Prepare for transport," Janeway said. Almost immediately the Doctor contacted the bridge.

"Sickbay to bridge…I think you should know…my patients are Vidiians."

(A/N: Sorry for the long wait but we hope it was worth it and that you'll look forward to our next chapter. Feel free to leave reviews.)


	4. Chapter 4: Unexpected Emotions

Chapter 4—Unexpected Emotions

(A/N: Sorry for the incredibly long wait, we've been having computer issues and so don't have access as often as we would like hence the long wait. However that has changed now and we're back! We hope that this chapter was worth the wait.)

(Disclaimer: We don't own Voyager but the original character of Miley is MysticFireBlood's)

Janeway nodded and looked over at Tuvok, "Let's go greet our guests," she said, "Chakotay you have the bridge."

"Aye, captain," Chakotay replied. About 5 minutes later, _Voyager's_ captain and security chief arrived at sickbay where the Doctor was beginning to treat the injured Vidiian while his companion looked on helplessly.

"Please don't stand so close, I need room to work," the Doctor said to the conscious Vidiian.

"Of course," he said backing off, "Unlike what most people believe, not all of us are doctors and know how to treat others' injuries."

Janeway looked at the Doctor, "Can he be treated?"

"I don't know. Considering the hodgepodge of alien organs in his body, it's difficult," The Doctor replied, "I need some time and quiet to figure this one out since his companion isn't a doctor himself."

"I am Captain Janeway," she introduced, "and this is my chief of security Lieutenant Tuvok. Can you tell us why you were attacked?"

"My name is Dextro. My partner is called Marx and we are in the business of dilithium gathering," the Vidiian explained, "Our technology as advanced as it is, still needs a power source and since most races probably wouldn't trade with us since they treat us like the plague we've contracted...we need to find suitable dilithium sources and horde them before anyone else claims them. Apparently I was found by some raiders who saw my cluster as easy pickings."

"If our Doctor can not treat your partner, what will you do?" Tuvok asked.

"Contact my people for help of course," Dextro replied.

"That could be problematic. We've run into them before," Janeway said, "And they see us as 'easy pickings' too."

"I see..." Dextro said, "We'll then, as an alternative, how about your Doctor does what he can, then returns him and me to my ship and we can call for help without endangering you. I'll still let you have one of the asteroids of course. You should begin work now and take what you can in the time we stay here."

"A most logical and reasonable decision," Tuvok replied.

"Your ship is small enough to fit in our shuttle bay, I'll have it brought aboard and have an engineering crew take a look at it if you wish."

"Thank you captain...may I remain here to watch over Marx?"

"Of course," Janeway said and she nodded to Tuvok and they both left the room, once they were outside Janeway and Tuvok ordered two security guards to stand watch outside of sickbay during the Vidiians' stay then they returned to the bridge.

"How did it go?" Chakotay asked.

"They seem to be miners, not doctors, or what the Vidiians consider doctors," Janeway said, "We're going to let the Doctor treat them as best he can and then let them go back to their own people. But we only have as long as we can provide help to stay here and work on one of the asteroids so we better move fast. That's both medical and technical." Then Janeway touched a control on her console, "Bridge to engineering. B'Elanna I've got two big projects for you."

"Okay captain, just let me know what you need."

"We're going to bring the Vidiian ship in the shuttle bay. I need an engineering crew to work on repairs on it. Plus I need another crew to mine one of the dilithium asteroids. We're on a limited time so I'm going to have to ask you to push your staff to the limit. I'm sending Harry to help on the Vidiian ship."

"Understood captain, we'll get right on it," B'Elanna replied, "Engineering out," the chief engineer turned to her people, "Okay you heard the captain. Carey I want you to lead the mining team and I'll lead the team working on the ship. Miley you're with me and Kim. It's a small ship so I think the three of us can handle that job. Carey, take whoever you need except Vorik and leave him a skeleton crew," then she turned to the Vulcan, "You'll be in charge of engineering until we're done with these jobs. Any questions?" When no one spoke up she nodded, "Okay let's get to work."

A few minutes later, B'Elanna, Harry, and Miley were in _Voyager's_ shuttle bay and saw the small Vidiian ship that had been brought on board.

"So Starfleet," B'Elanna began as they pulled out the tool kits, "I heard you and Ensign Fitzpatrick had a fun time after Tom and I left," she smiled as she grabbed what she needed and pried a panel off to begin work.

Harry blushed, "Well we didn't do much, just talked and went for a walk, but yeah it was a lot of fun." At that Miley blushed as well.

"So when's the second date?" B'Elanna asked.

"Umm…we haven't made plans for that yet," Miley replied, also starting to work on the Vidiian systems, "but I would like to," she whispered to Harry.

"So would I," Harry replied. B'Elanna just smiled and continued to work, but then began to grunt.

"This piece of junk isn't working!" she shouted all of a sudden causing Harry and Miley to flinch and stop what they were doing. The chief engineer took out a tricorder and began to scan, "Ah here's the problem…Miley, Harry I need you to reroute those power sources over there. It's got a failsafe that kicked in. I swear these systems are worse than on the _Val Jean..." _when she noticed her subordinates were ready on their end, she nodded, "On three…one…two…three…" suddenly they heard the systems coming on inside the ship and the door to the cockpit opened, "Okay _now_ we can actually do something." Over the next half hour, the trio worked their best and had the Vidiian ship almost completely functional. One system, however, was giving Miley a hard time.

"This conduit just refuses to have the power run through it," Miley said, "And it leads to life support and I don't see any way to reroute it."

"Let me see," B'Elanna said approaching her but as soon as she got up, the conduit exploded and sent sparks at the young ensign and sent her to the other side of the ship, knocking her out.

"Miley!" Harry was at her side in a second.

"Get her to sickbay!" B'Elanna ordered.

Harry tapped his commbadge, "Kim to sickbay. Medical emergency. Ensign Fitzpatrick was hit with an explosion. She's burned and unconscious."

"Acknowledged. Transporting now," the Doctor replied calmly and the transporter effect appeared over Miley's body and she was soon in sickbay.

"What is it with this ship and delayed reactions!" B'Elanna hit the side of the small craft, "This is what happens with bad craftsmanship! It's going to take a bit longer to repair this thing. I don't feel right sending those miners back in this thing if it's going to blow up in their faces. Harry, get to engineering and bring back some more equipment. We'll make this ship run safely if it kills me."

Harry had a blank look on his face at first, but B'Elanna shook him, "Harry. I need you to do this," she said sternly.

"Sorry lieutenant," Harry said, "I'll get right on it," then he took off, running towards engineering. On the way he tapped his commbadge, "Kim to sickbay, how is Miley doing?"

"I informed the bridge of her injury, but she's going to be fine. I'm having Kes take care of her, the Vidiian needs my full attention. You can visit when your shift is over. Sickbay out," the Doctor replied.

"_That's a relief,"_ Harry breathed as he continued to engineering. He felt even better than he thought. Nothing's ever distracted him from his work before this and ever since he's gotten to know Miley even a little, the thought of working with her was wonderful, but seeing her injured almost caused a real panic and then he almost missed B'Elanna's instructions. Now that he knew she was going to be alright, he could concentrate on his work better. He hoped that this sort of thing won't happen again anytime soon though. He couldn't stand the thought of anything worse happening to her…

(A/N: Well we hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry for the long wait, but the wait won't be as long for the next chapter we promise. Please leave us some reviews and let us know what you think.)


	5. Chapter 5: Good Deeds

Chapter 5—Good Deeds

(A/N: Hello again, we're back with another chapter! We know the wait was long, but not too long we hope. Anyways we hope you enjoy.)

(Disclaimer: We don't own Voyager but the original character of Miley is MysticFireBlood's. PhinalPhantasy came up with the names of the Vidiians in this story.)

A few hours later, a call came into the bridge, "Torres to bridge. We're done here. I think we actually made this ship better than before it was ever damaged," the half-Klingon said proudly.

"Good job B'Elanna. I'll inform our guests," Janeway replied.

"How's Carey's team doing?"

"They've done well. They've taken back enough dilithium to last us a few extra months. If the Doctor is done with his patient, we'll have to recall them."

"Understood. With your permission, I'll stay here to explain the modifications we needed to make to their ship. Then I'll return to engineering."

"Very well. I'm sorry about Ensign Fitzpatrick, but the Doctor tells me she's almost ready to return to duty. You and Harry still managed to do an exceptional job. Bridge out." Then she called sickbay, "Bridge to the Doctor. Please inform our guests that their ship is ready whenever you're done with your patient, they're free to go."

"Understood captain," the Doctor replied, "I'm almost done as well. I still have no clues how to treat the Phage but I've done all I could to extend the patient's life. Unfortunately, he'll only have a few weeks after this."

"I understand," Janeway replied, "I know you've done your best."

Back in sickbay, the Doctor pressed a hypospray to the Vidiian's neck and he regained consciousness.

"Where am I?" Marx asked

"You're on the starship _Voyager. _I'm the doctor who has been treating you," the Doctor explained.

"My partner?" he asked.

"I'm here and safe. These good people drove off the raiders and repaired our ship…our other ship…didn't make it," Dextro said sadly.

"I see…well better that than a slow death from the Phage…So what do we do now?"

"I've done all I could, but I'm afraid that the Phage will take your life in two weeks or less…" the Doctor said solemnly, "Unless you can get to one of your own doctors…I hate to admit it but they are more skilled than me."

"You still went out of your way to help us. That's more than most would've done. You have our gratitude," Marx said.

"Your ship has been repaired and is ready for you to take off anytime you wish," the Doctor informed them, "Kes here can show you to our shuttlebay where our chief engineer will explain the modifications she had to make to ensure your ship would be safer."

"Please follow me," Kes said kindly. The two Vidiians nodded and followed her out of sickbay. Then the Doctor turned his attention to Miley.

XXX

"So tell me," Marx asked, "Most people hardly help out Vidiians out of the goodness of their hearts. What are _you_ getting out of this?"

"Well unlike most people, we really _would_ help out of the goodness of our hearts," Kes said, "Even though our past encounters with your people have been dangerous to us." They approached a turbolift and entered. Kes instructed the computer to take them to the shuttlebay.

"Sounds too good to be true…" Marx said.

"I know it does, but they've done nothing but be helpful," Dextro told his partner, "Although I offered them use of one of our asteroids during the duration of our stay, I got the impression they would've helped even if I didn't." The turbolift stopped and they got out and headed to the shuttlebay.

"I'm sorry for my rudeness…I'm not used to such kindnesses," Marx admitted.

"It's perfectly understandable," Kes said, "Most people we encounter are hesitant to trust us just because we're strangers and have technology that is very advanced compared to most." Then they reached the entrance to the shuttlebay and entered where B'Elanna was waiting.

"Hello. You must be the pilots of this ship," she greeted.

"Yes. Are you the one who repaired it?" Dextro asked.

"Well with help from some of my staff, yes," B'Elanna admitted, leading them inside their own ship, "Let me show you the changes we made. I hope you approve. Getting this thing running again was a challenge to say the least."

"It has gotten us through plenty of scrapes before, but it can be finicky," Marx said.

"Well that's a thing of the past," B'Elanna replied, "I set up a few extra routers to handle the extra power that runs through your ship. Plus we were able to strengthen the structural integrity field, inertial dampers, shields, and tractor beam emitter. That should make hauling asteroids a whole lot easier from now on."

"Very impressive," Dextro nodded as she explained and pointed out the improved systems, "Did you have to take from anything to get these improvements?"

"You may experience a drop in engine power if you boost the improved systems too much," B'Elanna warned.

"I say that's a fair trade off. If there's nothing else, I think we should go now," Marx said.

"Of course. Thank you for letting us use one of your asteroids."

"I think it was fair compensation. Good day," Dextro nodded. B'Elanna nodded back and exited the ship. Then Dextro activated the communication system on his ship, "This is Dextro. Our ship is prepared to leave as soon as you give the word."

"This is the Bridge. You'll be free to go as soon as the shuttlebay doors open. Good luck and thank you for your help."

"It is us who are in your debt. Have your teams left the asteroid?"

"Yes and we have a decent amount that should last us a long time, but don't worry, there's plenty left for other potential customers," Janeway smiled.

"Your generosity is overwhelming…" he replied and then the shuttlebay doors opened, "Safe journey to you and your crew."

"Same to you," Janeway replied. Then Dextro and Marx took off on their ship and exited _Voyager. _

XXX

Harry returned to the bridge and took his station, "The Vidiian ship is clear and heading back to their asteroid field," he reported.

"Alright then, time to get under way," Janeway said, "Tom set a course on our original heading and prepare to go to warp."

"One moment captain," Tuvok said, "Sensors are picking up another ship coming out of warp."

"Is it those raiders again?" Chakotay asked.

"Negative. This ship is much larger than the ones we encountered earlier…entering visual range now."

"On screen," Janeway ordered. Approaching their area was a large starship, two to three times the size of _Voyager_ and it was bronze colored. The design was one that was all too familiar to them, "That's the same design we encountered after leaving the plasma drift."

"Confirmed. They are approaching us. Shall we raise shields?"

"Open hailing frequencies! Fast!"

"Captain, _they're_ hailing _us," _Harry reported, "Audio only."

"Let's hear them," Janeway ordered.

"Alien starship. You have been confirmed as _Voyager._ Surrender and prepare to be boarded."

"This is Captain Janeway. Our intentions here were not hostile. We responded to the distress signal of the mining ship in charge of this area. We rendered assistance and are preparing to leave. We have no desire for a battle."

"Our ships scans revealed you have stolen several kilos of our dilithium. Surrender it and you _may_ be spared."

"If you contact the miners, you'll find out that they gave us that dilithium willingly as compensation for our assistance."

"Irrelevant. That dilithium belongs exclusively to the Vidiian Sodality. Surrender at once."

"I've got that course you wanted. Say the word and we'll jump to warp," Tom said.

"Shields captain?" Tuvok asked again.

"Raise them," Janeway said.

"No good deed goes unpunished," Chakotay commented, "We could always give it back."

"I have a hunch that if we surrender, they'll not only take our dilithium but our bodies as well. I won't take that chance," Janeway said. Then she turned to Tom, "Take us to warp."

"Yes ma'am!" Tom said. Soon the nacelles were raised and the mighty starship jumped to warp, but the enemy vessel was soon in pursuit.

"How in the hell did they find us so quickly?" Janeway asked.

"It wasn't our visitors, they didn't send any signals at all except the ones to us while they were departing," Harry said, "But I did intercept an attempted hail from them to the larger ship. They actually confirmed what we did for them and asked they stand down. It seems as if the enemy ship had 'selective hearing.'"

"I guess they really were grateful for our help," Tom said, "Not that it mattered to the big guys out there."

"The enemy vessel is closing in on us and will be in weapons range in 20 seconds."

"Fire aft phasers. See if we can slow them down," Janeway ordered.

"Firing. Direct hit, their shields are holding. They are returning fire," Tuvok reported calmly. Then the ship shook as it was impacted by the enemy fire, "Our own shields are holding, but barely."

"Increase speed to maximum," Janeway ordered, but then the ship shook again. Hard.

"After taking that hit, we _are_ at maximum," Tom reported, "I can't get any more out of the engines."

"Bridge to Engineering. B'Elanna can you give us more speed."

"I can give you that or more shields, but not both," B'Elanna replied.

"It is unlikely we can outrun them without disabling them first," Tuvok pointed out.

"Bring us out of warp. Reinforce the shields and then bring us about," Janeway ordered. Soon both combatants came out of warp and _Voyager_ turned to face the attacker.

"Target their engines and fire," Janeway ordered. On the screen several crimson beams struck the shields of the enemy vessel but couldn't get through to their engines.

"The enemy ship's shields are dropping. We need a few more shots," Tuvok said.

"Continue firing and evading until we've disabled them." _Voyager_ may have been smaller than the Vidiian ship, but that made it more maneuverable at impulse speeds. It dodged the enemy attacks and continued to fire at their shields.

"Their shields are down, targeting their engines," Tuvok said but then the ship shook again several times, "They've fired hypothermic charges. Our shields are down and phaser power is reduced to 50%." They shook again, "Phasers are inactive. They're attempting to lock on with their grapplers."

"I can't dodge them captain," Tom said, "We're down to thrusters only."

"The Vidiian ship has locked on to us. We're being boarded." Tuvok said.

"All hands this is the captain…we're being boarded…arm yourselves!" Janeway said.

(A/N: We hope you enjoyed that. Next chapter is going to be action packed as the _Voyager_ crew attempts to repel the Vidiian invaders. One attack in particular will deeply affect Harry and Miley…)


	6. Chapter 6: Breach Point

A Long Voyage Home

Chapter 6--Breach Point

By: MysticPhantasy

(A/N: Sorry it's taken so long to update this story. MysticFireBlood hasn't been feeling well due to her grandfather being extremely sick and so we have been delayed in this update. We hope you understand and will enjoy this chapter.)

Disclaimer: We don't own _Voyager_ or its characters. The character of Miley Fitzpatrick is MysticFireBlood's

All across _Voyager, _the red alert alarm sounded and the lights dimmed to a minimum, leaving the ship in an eerie red glow. The crew were quickly arming themselves with regular phasers or phaser rifles, whichever they had easier access to. Tuvok's security teams were posted in key areas on the ship and the boarding area. Everyone on the bridge armed themselves as well, and Tuvok put a security lock on all the doors on the ship.

"The hull is being breached. We have three security teams in the area to repel the attackers," the Vulcan reported.

"What about force fields?" Janeway asked.

"Force fields have been activated in key areas including the bridge and near the breach point. We can activate more as needed."

"Understood," Janeway replied. Then she made a decision that she wishes she didn't have to, "Tell your teams to set their weapons to kill."

XXX

The security teams that were posted by the breach point felt a lot of tension as they saw sparks coming from the ceiling above them. There was an explosion and several Vidiians descended, all armed with their deadly tools that can transport a person's organs directly from their bodies to their ships. A horrible way to be attacked. They opened fire on the security teams but the force fields held their beams at bay. As long as it held, the rest of the crew was safe. Two of the enemy Vidiians made some adjustments to their weapons and fired again. The beams actually went _through_ the force field and hit the wall to either side near the force field and then the security team saw the it fizzle and deactivate.

"Security team to Bridge! The force field was breached!" a security guard said, then screamed in horror as he was shot by another Vidiian. The remainder of the team returned fire and dropped several of the invaders.

"How'd they breach our force field so quickly?" Janeway asked.

"I'm detecting damage to the EPS grid in that area," Harry reported, "Correction…there are _missing _parts of that grid."

"The Vidiians' weapons work like miniature transporters," Tuvok reminded them, "They must have used them to transport the key components of the force field generator away."

"Damn…warn the other security teams. Deactivate the other force fields. We can't afford to replace more components if they do that again," Janeway said.

"Acknowledged. Tuvok to all security teams. The force fields need to be deactivated. Retreat from your positions and regroup in hidden areas to make tactical strikes against any Vidiian you encounter."

"This is security team two. We've lost security team one and the Vidiians are still coming through the breach point. Retreating now."

A second wave of Vidiian invaders emerged from the breach point. They looked at their weapons, which also could act as scanners.

"The half-Klingon is in engineering," one Vidiian reported, "We'll have a lot of trouble getting to her, it's several decks down."

"The more of these people that resist us, the more organs we harvest. We win either way," another pointed out.

"We have taken heavy casualties as well. We don't want to lose half our crew harvesting this one," the first one said.

"I've detected another strange medical signature from their sickbay," a third said, "I believe this one has potential as well."

"We'll split up. Half of us will find the Klingon, the others will go to sickbay and find this anomaly."

XXX

"Sensors report two more waves of Vidiians have entered the ship and have split up into two separate groups. One is apparently heading for engineering and the other is heading towards sickbay," Tuvok reported.

"Bridge to Engineering. B'Elanna, a group of Vidiians are heading your way. There is a security team in between you and them so hopefully they won't reach you, but prepare just in case," Janeway said.

"Bridge to sickbay, Doctor there are some Vidiians heading your way!"

"Acknowledged. I'll try to get Miley and Kes out of here," the Doctor replied.

XXX

"Alright people, force fields won't do any good against them anymore. Everyone stay close to your posts but get down quickly if we get attacked. I can't afford to lose any of you so don't try to be heroes," B'Elanna told her staff as they did their best to assist the bridge in preparing defenses from their posts. They heard the sounds of phaser fire coming from just outside engineering and shouts of orders and a few cries as both security officers and enemies fell.

"Computer activate a level 10 force field around the warp core!" B'Elanna ordered. She knew about the Vidiians penetrating the regular force fields, but she hoped that this would be adequate protection if they decided to use their weapons on what was essentially _Voyager's _heart. Satisfied with the sparkle of the force field activating, she heard more phaser shots and then saw sparks flying down the center of the entrance to engineering. The half-Klingon ducked behind a console and grabbed a phaser, determined to defend her post. The doors blew open and a group of five Vidiians entered, weapons drawn.

"We want the Klingon!" the lead Vidiian shouted.

B'Elanna's eyes widened _"It's not engineering they're after…it's me!"_ she drew her phaser and peeked around the wall and opened fire, bringing down one of the Vidiians. The other four returned fire and began to move closer towards her. Then B'Elanna fired again, taking down a second as the other three returned fire. She was hit by one of their beams, causing a blue glow to temporarily flash around her body and was knocked down to the ground.

"We have what we need. Let's go!" one of the other Vidiians said. B'Elanna didn't feel like she was missing anything. In fact, she felt as if she only got hit by a light stun beam. She got up on her knees and returned fire, taking another down, but the remaining two ignored her and made a beeline for the exit.

XXX

Kes had just finished treating Miley when they heard phaser fire coming from the corridor outside.

"I have an idea. Kes get yourself and Miley to the surgical bay. Kes nodded and took Miley to the far side of the room and they both ducked behind the bio bed.

"Computer activate force field in front of the surgical bay," The Doctor ordered. When that was done he faced the door when it was blown open and a trio of Vidiians entered. They used their devices to scan the room.

"The anomaly is in here, she's that woman!" one said, pointing to Miley.

"You'll have to go through me to get her!" the Doctor said. The other two opened fire at the EMH but their beams passed harmlessly through him, "Computer activate force field around sickbay's entrance and fill the room with anesthezine!" Where the door exploded another force field sparked to life and a white fog began to fill sickbay, "I'm a hologram so this won't affect me, but I say you have about 10 seconds of consciousness left," he informed the intruders who began to cough and get drowsy as the sleeping agent began to take effect. One of the Vidiians pointed his weapon at Miley and tried to fire, but the Doctor grabbed his wrist and pried his weapon out of his hands. He moved to do the same to the other two, but as he disarmed one, the other managed to get a shot off as he lost consciousness. The beam hit Miley who screamed in pain as her tail was dematerialized off of her body!

"We…win…" the last Vidiian said as he lost consciousness.

XXX

"The remaining Vidiians are in retreat," Tuvok reported as everyone on the bridge observed the enemy's movements.

"Did we drive them off?" Chakotay asked.

"Either that, or they got what they came for and are trying to leave without further casualties to their own forces."

Janeway sighed, "Tell your officers to stand down and let them go. We've lost some good people just now and hindering their escape will only cause us to lose more. They've won this round," she said solemnly.

Tuvok nodded, "Understood captain. Tuvok to all security. The Vidiians are leaving the ship. Do not engage them further. Repeat: Do not engage them further." On the main view screen, a diagram of _Voyager_ was displayed showing the movements of the Vidiian intruders and _Voyager's_ officers. Everyone was moving out of the Vidiians' way and they returned to the breach point and returned to their own ship. Then they felt the ship shake.

"They've released their grappler captain," Harry reported, "And they're jumping to warp…they're gone captain…and according to the damage report, we're in no shape to pursue them."

"Damn…casualty report," Janeway ordered.

"A dozen security men are either dead or heavily injured," Chakotay replied, "but they took down over 100 Vidiian intruders before they fell."

"Bridge to sickbay. Doctor you're going to have your hands full. Prepare for incoming injured…with missing organs."

"Understood captain. There are two more things you should know. Besides the security teams, Lt. Torres was attacked as well as Ensign Fitzpatrick. Torres says she feels fine but I'm having her report here…as for Miley…her tail was stolen and she's in shock." With that announcement, Harry's heart felt like it was ripped out of his body as if he suffered an attack from the enemy.

"Understood Doctor," Janeway said sadly, "Keep me appraised. Bridge out."

(A/N: That's it for this chapter. We hope it was intense and suspenseful for you. Please leave us some reviews and tell us what you think. Next chapter the crew has a big decision to make on Miley's behalf…)


	7. Chapter 7: To Help a Friend

**A Long Voyage Home**

**Chapter 7—To Help a Friend**

**By: MysticPhantasy**

(A/N: Sorry it took so long to update this story. Our computer was out of commission for over a month. Now that it's back in action though, so are we! We promise to try to make up for lost time by updating as much as possible. With that, we hope this chapter is worth the wait.)

(Disclaimer: We don't own _Voyager_ or the characters in this story, but Miley belongs to MysticFireBlood.)

After the battle, Janeway took it upon herself to go to Sickbay and check on her crew.

"Doctor, what can you tell me about the injured?" she asked as she entered.

He looked up at her after finishing a scan on one of Tuvok's men and says, "Right now, not much. I am trying to see if we can find a donor for this man because he's missing a kidney, which he can live on just one, however, he only had one to start with. From what I found in his file, he donated one of his just before joining up with your crew," he said pointing to the Maquis officer.

"Can't you just use cloning technology and make him a new one?" Janeway asked.

"I am in the process of doing that now, but I would prefer he'd have a real one due to the fact we are still so far from home," the Doctor replied.

"Alright, well, let's worry about that later. Right now we need to focus on saving them."  
"I know captain, I am working as hard as I can right now."

"I know Doctor and we appreciate that, we really do."

The Doctor smiled, "I am glad someone does."

"So what can you tell me about B'Elanna and Miley?" she asked as she looked at the Shamazar native.

"B'Elanna, outside of having her temper, is fine for the most part. I sent her back to duty to help with repairs on the ship; however, they stole some of her DNA. Now, remind you, what they did is not life threatening, it's just the fact they did it is what is upsetting her."

"I'll make a note of that. After all, after our last run in with them we found out her DNA is something they need to help find a cure for them."

"Exactly," the Doctor added as he check over some more patients.

"And Miley?" she asked.

The Doctor stopped and looked at her, "Miley suffered a great loss captain. It took me a while to stabilize her due to the lose of her tail, but the worst part of it is, her tail is important to her people's…reproductive process," he whispered that last part.

"What do you mean?" Janeway asked not sure of what he meant.

"Their tail is stroked during intercourse to give off a pheromone and another hormone that will help with conception and also to take both parties to an level of ecstasy, especially at…"

Janeway stopped him by putting up her hand, "I think I get your point. So, you are saying that if she doesn't get her tail back, it would be like she was…neutered? Am I correct?"

"Yes." Janeway was horrified at the thought.

"And making her a cloned one?" she asked.

"Impossible without another female Shamazar aboard," the Doctor simply put.

"Let her know when she wakes up we will do whatever we can to save her tail," Janeway smiled as she left to check the rest of her ship.

**xXx**

Janeway was on her way to Engineering, only to hear some yelling and cursing in Klingon.

_"That must be B'Elanna,"_ she thought to herself as she walked though the door.

"What's wrong?" she asked with caution as she approached the half-Klingon.

B'Elanna turned around, "Engines are down. Thankfully I can get it up in running in…DAMN!..."

"B'Elanna, clam down. Ask Carey to work on the engines. Why don't you take a break?" Janeway said.

"Because I can't. Kes told me what happened to Miley, and I just can't let my friend suffer like that," B'Elanna said looking at her captain. Frustration filled her core, tears ran down her cheeks and her knuckles turned white from holding the tool in her hand too tight.

"I understand that you are upset and you aren't the only one, but you are letting your emotions overtake you. This isn't like you, you need a break. Miley will be fine. I was going to send Chakotay and Tom out to look for Miley's tail and anything else they took from us before it's too late," Janeway said as she placed her hands on B'Elanna's shoulders.

"For once, I agree. Alright," B'Elanna replied. She then turned to her second in command, "Carey, get to work on the engines. I am going to take a break."

"Sir?" Lt. Carey questioned.

"Just do what I said," B'Elanna ordered.

"Yes Sir," Carey replied.

B'Elanna then left with Janeway.

**xXx**

B'Elanna thought for a moment before returning to her quarters. She decided to take a slight detour and check on her friend.

After arriving in Sickbay, which was filled to capacity, she walked over the surgical bay and up to where her friend could see her, "Hey Miley," she said as she took her hand.

"Hey," Miley whispered back.

"I heard what happened, I am so sorry," she said.

"I know. I am too. Do-do you know if Harry knows?" Miley asked.

"I am sure he's heard by now. Why?" B'Elanna asked.

"Because I really, really like him and now this…I want to know if he'll still cares about me too. I mean, if I don't get my tail back…" Miley started to say.

"Hey, none of that talk. Do you hear me? I am sure Harry will love you no matter what. With or without a tail."

"But do you know the purpose behind my tail?"

"Besides the fact it sort of functions as another hand, no," B'Elanna replied.

"It…it is important in the sexual process of my race. When petted during intercourse, it sets off a sexual pheromone that is overwhelming for both parties and also cares a hormone that helps in reproduction."

"Wow. I don't know what to say," B'Elanna said.

"It's alright," Miley whispered.

"Well, rest up for now. The captain said she was going to do everything she could do to get it and anything else back from those creeps," B'Elanna smiled.

"Thanks," Miley smiled back. Then B'Elanna left and went back to her room.

**xXx**

Back on the bridge of _Voyager_, Janeway looked at her crew. "Here's the deal. The Vidiians screwed us over more so this time than the rest. In the process they took many things from us, including something precious from Ensign Fitzpatrick. Her tail is vital to her. I will not tell you why, but I am not going to stop until we get it and whatever else they took from us back," then she turned to Chakotay and Tom, "I want you two to take a shuttle and find that ship and get back what belongs to _Voyager's_ people."

At that time Harry Kim spoke up, "I would like to go please captain." He didn't look well and everyone knew it. His eyes where bloodshot and poofy underneath and his hair was messed up. Also, for an hour after the attack, no one, except for Tom, knew where he was.

Janeway turned to the youngest member of her bridge crew and asked, "May I ask why?"  
"Because ma'am, Miley means the world to me and I want to help her. Please," Harry nearly begged.

Janeway smiled, though many thought she didn't know what was going on behind her back, she knew, "Of course you may. Meet Mr. Paris and the commander in the shuttlebay in an hour."

Harry smiled and then thanked her before leaving to see Miley.

Then Janeway turned to Tuvok, "The Doctor successfully captured the three Vidiians who attacked sickbay. When will the anesthezine wear off?"

"In a few minutes captain. They are already in the brig of course. I suggest we try to gather whatever intelligence we can from them."

"Agreed," Janeway said, "Let's go. Chakotay, you have the bridge. I'll be back before you leave, so you don't have to worry about letting a crewman be in charge of the bridge," she smiled, realizing that if she didn't return, that the bridge would not have any members of the senior staff as they will all be doing various assignments. Then she and Tuvok entered the turbolift to get to the brig. Once they arrived, the trio of Vidiians woke up, apparently in pain, probably a leftover headache from the anesthezine. "You three are lucky. You're the only ones we managed to capture alive," Janeway started without preamble.

"Lucky? The lucky ones died fighting for their ship. At least they won't have to suffer from the Phage anymore," one Vidiian said.

"If you expect us to submit to torture to reveal where our comrades are, you'll be wasting your time. We Vidiians are constantly under torture just being alive," another said, "You might as well kill us."

"It is not Starfleet policy to torture or execute prisoners. On the contrary. We have very clear guidelines on the treatment of prisoners and their rights," Tuvok replied.

"And that would be?" the third Vidiian asked.

"To keep you healthy and alive. You see. It would be against our nature to do the slightest harm to you and we must try to help you as much as possible…within reason. We won't let you out of your cell of course, not unless you divulge the information we seek, but our laws and customs prevent us from trying to use force to get said information from you," Janeway said.

"So if we don't tell you what you want to know…"

"Then we would have no alternative but to keep you here. We would try to make you comfortable of course and you would receive medical treatment from our doctor. However your own doctors have more advanced techniques to keep you alive," Tuvok said, "And we would be most unwilling to harvest organs from other sentient lifeforms so your life expectancy here would not be as long as it would be were you in the hands of your own people. By comparison our techniques must seem as primitive as scalpels and needles seem to us. Your bodies will slowly rot in this cell and you will be in extreme pain. You may even beg us to kill you out of mercy, but that too is against our customs. You will die a very slow and very painful death as we try our best to save your lives but we will ultimately fail." The cold detachment in which Tuvok spelled out their fate would have made them pale, if it were possible.

**xXx**

Miley was asleep when Harry got there and so were the others. He decided to be quiet and walked over to her. He took her hand and bent down and kissed her on the lips before whispering in her ear, "Don't worry Miley. Tom, Chakotay and I will find your tail," then he left to meet with them in the shuttlebay.

"How's Miley?" asked Tom as they got into the shuttle.

"She was asleep," Harry sighed as he took his place.

"Don't worry, we will find her tail," Chakotay said trying to sound reassuring.

After preparations where made for the shuttle to take off, Chakotay touched his commbadge, "Bridge this is Shuttle _Cochrane_, we are ready. Did our 'guests' give us the coordinates we needed?"

"Let's just say Tuvok was very convincing. They felt that it would benefit their long term health to give us what we want so we can leave them somewhere their comrades can find them and care for them with their superior medicine," Janeway replied, "Transmitting the coordinates."

"Got them. We're ready to leave," Tom said.

"Good luck Shuttle _Cochrane_," Janeway said.

"Thank you," Chakotay replied and they left for their voyage to find the Vidiians and bring back what was theirs.

TBC…

(A/N: Well we hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry we didn't have it out sooner, but as we said, we promise to do better in the future. Next chapter, the shuttle crew attempt to locate the enemy ship or base to retrieve what was stolen from them. We hope you look forward to it. Please leave us your reviews.)


	8. Chapter 8: Retrieval Mission

**A Long Voyage Home**

**Chapter 8—Retrieval Mission**

**By: MysticPhantasy**

(A/N: Yay we updated and didn't take too long this time ;) Sorry, had to get that out. Here is the next chapter as promised. We hope you enjoy)

(Disclaimer: We do not own Star Trek: Voyager or its characters except for our OC Miley.)

After the shuttle left _Voyager's_ bay, Chakotay noticed Harry wasn't himself.

"She means that much to you?" he asked the young ensign.

Harry turned and looked at the commander, "What?"

"Ensign Fitzpatrick, she means a lot to you?" he asked again.

"It's funny you know. It started out me being curious about this girl of whom I never saw before one night after having my butt kicked by Tom at pool and finding out her name and which department she was in and then going to said department and finding out she had lied about her shift. Then I read her profile and found out she was a princess of a planet that I never herd of. Then finding her and asking her out, just to have her be late for the dinner. After words we got to talking and I found out even more information about her, and finally when I got the nerves, I kissed her on the cheek and from that moment on, I knew I was in love with her and that nothing would keep me from doing that. I should have known it was s jinx. I am a jinx. I fell in love and she got injured."

"And now your risking your life for the woman you love to get her tail back. Man, when you get bit by the love bug, it bites hard and doesn't loosen up," Tom tried to joke.

Harry turned to him, "And you are risking your life for a very temperamental half-Kligon-hybrid."

Tom laughed, "Ouch. Wow, I didn't expect you to have it in you for such a come back and yes as true as it may seem, I do care for B'Elanna, but I seriously drought she will show any emotion for me whatsoever."

"Who knows maybe in 65 years," Chakotay chimed in.

"Says the main who's in love with the boss," Tom replied and as soon as he did, his eyes got wide and yes he blushed, however to his surprise when he turned to see if he was a dead man, Chakotay just smiled at him.

Then he turned to Harry and said, "Why don't you go in the back there and rest. It's going to be a while before we get there and we are going to need you to be at your best. I have a feeling we are going to need your expertise when we arrive."

Harry then stood up and said, "Thanks, I think I will," and walked to the back and lay down and tried to rest.

**xXx**

12 hours had past since they left their ship, but they didn't have to wait any longer.

"Commander, I am picking up something on long-range sensors," Tom said.

"Readings?" Chakotay asked.

"It's the Vidiians sir," Tom replied.

"Alright, I'll wake Harry and you run a scan of their ship and see where their sickbay is and set the transporters to transport us there," Chakotay said as he walked to the back of the shuttle and started to wake Harry up.

Harry looked up at the commander, his eyes where blood shot and his face look like it had tear stains, "Are we there?"

"Yes. Are you alright?" Chakotay asked with great concern.

"I will be once Miley is better," Harry replied as he sat up. He walked to the washroom and cleaned his face, taking a look at himself in the mirror, "God, you look horrible," he said to himself.

He then left and grabbed his tool kit and the organ transport box and stepped onto the transporter pad and waited for Tom.

Once he was on the paid, he called to the computer, "Computer, three to beam to the coordinates," and they were soon covered by the sparkles of the transporter and were replaced by empty space.

Once aboard the ship, red lights started to flash and they knew they had triggered the intruder alarm.

Harry, Tom and Chakotay started to walk towards the door of the sickbay, when from behind, a Vidiian male appeared and shot at Chakotay's leg, removing a knee ball joint.

Tom, while firing back at the Viddians, who were closing in fast, managed to pick Chakotay up, while Harry was working on the lock for the door.

"Damn, this is just like their bodies, messed up," he said as he put the tool in his mouth and removed a set of wires to re-wire. It was like nothing he studied before. He, however was also trying to make mental notes of everything, just in case they had to do this again, however, they were hoping not to.

Finally about a minute later, "Finally," he yelled and they ran in.

He managed to lock the door, but knew full well it wasn't going to hold.

"Work quickly," Chakotay said as Tom sat him on the floor and took guard. Chakotay was in so much pain, but knew there was no need to complain. There was nothing the other men could do for him. He just hoped The Doctor had the know how on how to replace it.

Harry placed the box on the floor and got out his medical tricorder and started to scan the organs on the shelves. He found what belonged to _Voyager's_ people and finally after about 7 minutes found what he personally was looking for, his hopeful girlfriend's tail.

He sighed as he put the gloves on The Doctor had gave him. He then picked it up and placed it gently into the box, set the freeze mode and stasis mode on it, closed and locked it and then turned to Tom, "Alright, get ready!" He then took his tool and re-opened the door and they got out, right into the middle of an ambush.

"Oh crap!" Harry said.

Tom pressed his commbadge, "Computer, three to beam up!" however, just as they were beaming, a woman was running towards them from the shadows, "Guys, help me!" she yelled, however her cries went unheard when a group of Vidiians caught her and covered her mouth…

Once back on the ship, Tom laid Chakotay down and ran to the conn and started off, going the fastest speed possible. Lucky for them, the Vidiians decided it wasn't worth going after them a second time around and kept their true prize…

**xXx**

Finally, twelve hours later they were back on _Voyager _and Tom had the computer do an emgernacy medical transport of Commander Chakotay and the stasis box to sick bay while he and Harry decided to walk it.

"What did you find?" he asked as the walked down the hall to sickbay.

"It's more of what I didn't find. I still couldn't find anything to do with B'Elanna's DNA. I know The Doctor said it probably wouldn't be a big deal though," Harry replied.

"Did you find Miley's tail?" Tom asked.

"Yeah. He asked me to wear hypoallergenic gloves before handing the tail."

Finally they reached their destination, "Aw, gentlemen, I see you two made it out more or less without a scratch," The Doctor said as they entered the room.

"I guess you can say that," Harry said as he looked at the surgical bay, but not finding Miley.

"Doc, where's Miley?"

"I had Kes help her to her room as well as some of the others. I needed to start with the worst off first and then work my way to them and I needed the room. I wasn't sure what would happen while you were out. Don't worry; she will be fine and much better once she is whole again. Now, if you excuse me, this artificial heart won't work for much longer. I only had it do the job of a real one for 48 hours and I don't have much time left."

When Tom and Harry left, they saw the captain walking to sickbay. She didn't look like her useful self, but they thought it would be best to keep out of it. Besides, by this time tomorrow they knew there would be a rumor going a around and they would here about it soon.

Harry looked at Tom, "I don't know about you, but I need a shower and a nap."

"Someone should report in to Tuvok," replied Tom.

Harry smiled and he sighed, "And I suppose that someone is me?"

"You supposed right. I'll see you around," Harry said before heading off to a turbo lift to his room.

**xXx**

Janeway made her way to sickbay and over to Chakotay's bed, "So, you just had to play the hero, eh?" she joked.

"I wish. They hit me before I even knew it," he smiled at her.

She took his hand, "Well at least the mission was more or less a success."

"This is true, from what I overheard The Doctor say, we came back just in time."

"That's how I understand it. I know I should be worried about my whole crew, but I can't help but worry a little more over Miley. She is so young and full of life and rumor has it, she and Harry are dating and I don't want anything bad to happen to either of them."

Chakotay smiled, he loved how she carried about the crew, but especially her bridge crew, and he then looked at her and said, "The rumor mill is wrong, well sort of. He cares for he deeply and she cares for him equally so, they just haven't officially started dating."

"Aw, well thank you for correcting that information," she smiled.

"Not a problem. However, you do know there's a rumor about us, don't you?" he asked, rising an eyebrow.

She smiled, "Since day one. Some say that I fell for you when I saw you on the viewscreen?"

He returned the smile, "And did you?"

"After I saw you in that uniform I did."

"And what stopped you?" he asked, squeezing her hand.

"I wish I knew. I want to say because I am your commanding officer, but I know that's just something to hide behind. I also want to say it's because of Mark, but I doubt he'll wait 75 years for me. I just don't know what it is that's keeping me from this," she sighed.

Chakotay then took a hold of her arm and pulled her even closer to him and said, "Then stop hiding. There is no crime in falling in love," and gave her a kiss.

**xXx**

After Miley's surgery, at 2am, The Doctor pressed on his commbadge, "Sickbay to Ensign Kim."

Harry moaned and rolled over, "What is it Doc? Don't you know a person should get more than two hours of sleep?"

"Yes, after all I am a doctor. However, I have someone here who wants to speak to you," then he turned his head and nodded to Miley.

"Harry?" she whispered.

He sat up, "Miley?"

"Hey," she replied back.

"Hey yourself. Are you up for some company?"

"It would be nice, if the doctor says it's alright?" she smiled, even though he couldn't see it.

"Only for a few minutes," The Doctor replied.

"I'll be right down," he said as he cut the communication of. He got up and put on his robe, house shoes and commbadge and went down to sickbay.

When he got there, he walked over the surgical bay and took her hand and bent down and looked into her yellow-brown eyes, "Feeling better?"

She smiled, her long eye teeth showing, "A little. Doc says it will be a few days before I can go to work and even longer before I can wrap it around me like a belt."

"Well, that's alright. I like it when it sticks up like that," he smiled.

"I'll make a note of it," then she yawned.

"Seems like your meds are kicking in. I'll stop by tomorrow and see you. I have the day off," Harry replied, and then he bent down and kissed her softly on the lips.

She gave him a quick kiss back, "I'll make sure to be more awake then."

He moved some hair from her face and smiled, "Goodnight Miley."

"Goodnight Harry."

He smiled at The Doctor and whispered a thank you, for which he got a nod in return and then went back to his room and was finally able to get some peaceful sleep.

TBC…

(A/N: Well we hope you enjoyed this chapter. This officially ends our first saga in this story. The next chapter will start a year after this one with some surprises for the _Voyager_ crew and Harry and Miley. Your reviews are more than welcome.)


	9. Chapter 9: One Year Later

**A Long Voyage Home**

**Chapter 9— One Year Later**

**By: MysticPhantasy**

(A/N: Well here we are with another update. I hope everyone enjoys.)

(Disclaimer: We do not own Star Trek: Voyager or its characters except for our OC Miley.)

It had been about a year since the devastating Vidiian attack on _Voyager. _Since then, the ship and crew have had their share of good times and bad. They had lost a few more crew members, most notably, Ensign Seska, whom everyone thought was a Bajoran who turned out to be a Cardassian and she had recently switched her allegiance to _Voyager's_ other worst enemies, the Kazon. This had upset Chakotay the most as they were former lovers, but he tried to be strong for the crew, especially Janeway. They haven't heard from her since she left, but they knew it was only a matter of time before their enemies would come for them. In the meantime, the crew continued their voyage of discovery along the route to home and the bonds that hold them together have become stronger. And today, it was a particular crewwoman's birthday and there was a celebration in the holodeck. For the crew that has faced so much hardship, any excuse to throw a party was very welcome.

"And today we celebrate the birthday of our colleague and friend, Ensign Miley Fitzpatrick," Janeway smiled, raising a glass to the members of the crew, including the senior staff and the engineering staff, "Over the past year, she has gone through a very personal trial, but has overcome it and become stronger and we are fortunate to still have her." She smiled and everyone took a drink.

Miley blushed, "Thank you all. I don't think I'm that special."

"Nonsense," B'Elanna said, "You're one of my best engineers and have done more than your part helping us through several scrapes."

"Thank you B'Elanna," Miley said, "but I wouldn't have been much use to you if it wasn't for Harry, Tom, and Commander Chakotay risking their lives for my sake."

"We were glad to do it," Tom replied.

"Yes and if we had to do it all again, we would," Chakotay replied.

"I especially want to thank the Doctor, Kes and Harry for helping me through my rehabilitation," Miley smiled and gave each of them a hug, her tail flipping back and forth behind her.

"I was only doing my duty," the Doctor replied.

"Accepting gratitude is also part of your duty, Doctor," Kes reminded him.

"Well in that case, your gratitude is happily accepted," the Doctor replied to the light laughter of everyone else in the room.

"Well everyone, it's time for presents!" Neelix announced, guiding the guest of honor to a table where a small pile of packages was gathered, "If you don't mind Miley, "I'd like to go first."

"Umm okay go ahead Neelix," Miley smiled. Neelix handed her a small package and smiled. Miley tore open the paper and it revealed a book, "What is it?" she asked, then she saw the title. It was a cookbook of Shamazar recipes, in both English and her native language.

"Just thought you'd like a taste of home sometime, so whenever you want to, pick a recipe from that book and I'll be happy to prepare it for you," Neelix grinned.

"Thank you Neelix, that means a lot to me," Miley smiled.

"Now it's my turn," B'Elanna smiled and handed her a wider and slightly thicker package. Miley eagerly tore away the paper and it was a standard Starfleet issue tool case, "Your own personal tool kit…so you'll stop stealing from mine!" she laughed and the others joined in.

"Hey I was just borrowing without permission," Miley countered, "And I do return what I borrow at the end of the day."

"Well it still drove me crazy and now you won't have to," B'Elanna replied.

"Okay then," Harry said, "Why don't you open my gift next," he smiled.

"Ooh I can't wait," Miley tore open the paper and found a small box inside. When she opened it, a gold necklace with a small gold heart at the center was inside, "Oh Harry, it's beautiful."

"Well…it's to mark our 10 month anniversary," he grinned, getting a shocked reaction from everyone except from Tuvok.

"Ensign. There is no such thing as a '10 month anniversary.' By definition, an anniversary has to at least be a year long," the Vulcan said.

"Well I still wanted to commemorate the occasion and since there is no other appropriate word, anniversary will have to do," Harry replied.

"Oh Harry I love it!" Miley wrapped the young ensign in a hug before Tuvok could counter with another argument, the necklace already around her neck.

"I guess we can let you wear it for today," Janeway smiled, "But that necklace isn't regulation, so no more wearing it unless you're off duty after today," she ordered.

"Yes captain, thank you captain," Miley replied.

"Aww…does this mean no more double dates with the Delaney sisters?" Tom asked.

"Well not with me, but you can always ask someone else to be your wingman," Harry replied.

Just then a call came through the holodeck.

"Bridge to Holodeck," It was Samantha Wildman, the first time she was left in charge of the bridge.

"Go ahead Ensign," Janeway said.

"You better get back to the bridge. Sensors indicate a small fleet of Kazon ships approaching us fast."

"Go to _Red Alert_ and raise the shields," Janeway ordered Samantha, then to the gathered officers, "Miley, transfer the EMH back to sickbay then report to engineering, everyone else, to your posts!"

**XXX**

It took two turbolift rides to get everyone on the bridge and they all quickly took their posts. Samantha relinquished the captain's chair and took her own station in the science section. B'Elanna reported from engineering that the defense systems were good to go. Once everyone was seated the captain turned to the main viewer where a fleet of three large Kazon carrier ships approached.

"The lead ship is hailing us captain," Harry reported.

"On screen," Janeway nodded. The viewer switched to showing the bridge of the lead enemy vessel and the leader of the Kazon-Nistrim, Culluh, glared at them with Seska standing at his side with a smile on her face and she was rubbing her pregnant belly affectionately, which only served to make Chakotay nervous and Janeway angrier.

"It's nice to see my old friends again," Seska smiled at them.

"You stopped being one of our friends a long time ago Seska," Janeway replied, "What do you want this time?"

"The same thing I've always wanted captain…to show you the error of your ways and to make nice with the Kazon. With the advanced technology at your disposal and their military might, we wouldn't have to worry about going home, we can conquer ourselves a new one," Seska replied.

"You know we won't do that," Janeway said, "You're just wasting your time."

"Who's going to know? Starfleet? The Federation? As far as they know we're all dead. There's no one to answer to here in the Delta Quadrant but ourselves!" Seska said.

"We do have a higher authority," Janeway said, "The rules and regulations that govern our society. We are still representatives of that society no matter how far away from home we are."

"Enough of this Seska," Culluh glared at the woman, "Janeway. You will surrender _Voyager_ to us or be destroyed."

"I seriously doubt you want such a valuable a prize to be destroyed," Janeway replied, "You need _Voyager _intact."

"Perhaps. But I don't need its crew intact. How many of them die before you surrender is entirely up to you," Culluh replied, "End transmission!" The viewer switched back to the display of the trio of Kazon carriers increasing speed to pursue _Voyager._

"They're firing weapons," Tuvok reported. Blue phaser beams lanced out from each of the enemy ships striking the shields of _Voyager._

"Return fire with phasers only," Janeway ordered, "I don't want to use torpedoes unless absolutely necessary."

"Acknowledged," Tuvok replied. He returned fire on the lead ship, attempting to target their weapons and succeeded in disabling one of their phaser banks, but the other two ships' fire more than made up for them, "They're targeting our engines," the Vulcan said.

"Captain, if we were to drop to impulse, our smaller size will give us an advantage in maneuvering," Tom pointed out.

"And we could let them think they're winning," Janeway realized, "Do it Tom, drop us out of warp and when they get close come about. Tuvok that will be your chance to fire with every phaser bank we have."

_Voyager_ dropped out of warp and slowed down. The three enemy vessels did as well and were closing in on the smaller ship. Then it turned around and flew in between two of the ships and split its fire evenly on the sides of both and then fired at the engines of both, slowing the Kazon even more. However the lead vessel was there waiting and fired a continuous blue phaser beam at the forward section of _Voyager._

"Our shields are down by 40%," Tuvok informed everyone.

"Status of the enemy vessels?" Janeway asked.

"The two ships we fired upon have disabled impulse engines, but they are still capable of warp and their weapons are fully charged. The lead vessel's weapons are only at 50% but are still enough to deal serious damage to us," Tuvok reported.

"Mr. Paris, keep up with the evasive maneuvers. We can't let them get us in a crossfire," Janeway ordered.

"Yes ma'am," Tom acknowledged.

**XXX**

"They think they are winning," Seska smiled, "I think it's time for the surprise our new comrade prepared for us."

"If we did that from the beginning _Voyager_ would be mine by now!" Culluh shouted.

"No, we wanted them to play their big card first and with two of our ships temporarily disabled, I think that was it," Seska replied, "Time to change our phaser frequency," she turned to an officer who didn't appear to be Kazon.

"Yes Seska," a female voice replied.

**XXX**

"We're almost out of here," Tom announced, but then another bright blue beam struck from the lead Kazon ship and hit _Voyager…_hard! The whole bridge shook and Janeway and Chakotay were thrown from their seats.

"Did they penetrate our shields that quickly?" Chakotay asked as he and his captain struggled to get back in their seats.

"Negative," Tuvok looked slightly puzzled, "Shields are holding, but their weapons are going right through them." Another bolt struck the ship and the hull was scorched along a line on the left side of the primary hull.

"However she's doing it doesn't matter at this point, the point is she is and we're about to become sitting ducks or worse," Janeway said. Two more phaser blasts hit the ship, one after the other.

"Captain, I've lost impulse engines," Tom reported, "We're starting to drift."

"Can we go to warp?" Janeway asked.

"I wouldn't recommend it captain," Tuvok said, "there is damage along the primary hull and structural integrity is low. Going to warp now could rip that side of the ship apart."

"Damn…" Janeway cursed under her breath.

"The lead vessel is approaching," Harry said urgently.

"Captain," Chakotay said, "We may have to use the contingency play we came up with."

"Input the necessary codes in the computer," Janeway ordered as the ship shook again from enemy fire.

"What was that?" Chakotay asked. Just then the sound of a transporter beam activated and Seska appeared on the bridge targeting a weapon towards Janeway. Tuvok drew his phaser but Seska fired a warning shot just near Janeway's ear.

"Now now Tuvok," Seska said, "Wouldn't want your precious captain to get burned now do you?" the traitor then turned to the captain, "Are you sure you won't change your mind? We obviously won this time. Surrender, save your crew. I promise I'll make sure Culluh doesn't make you all slaves. He'll need some of you to help him figure out how your technology works."

"I thought that's why he had you," Chakotay replied.

"Ah Chakotay, come with me and help raise your child. We can be a real family. Not a surrogate one like this crew," Seska offered.

"You obviously don't know what family really means, Seska," Chakotay said.

"Even now, on the brink of defeat, you are still as stubborn as ever. All of you! Don't you get it? You can join me and help the Kazon build an empire in this Quadrant, one that _we_ could rule together. Federation technology is the most superior technology this side of the galaxy has ever seen. Think of the possibilities. Just now, I used the Kazon's prototype transporter. To us it's an everyday tool, to everyone else; it can be one of many ultimate weapons."

"We all have thought of the possibilities Seska. And we can't let them happen," Janeway replied.

"Then I guess that means we'll have to execute your crew," Seska sighed but smiled.

"Perhaps I didn't make myself clear," Janeway said, "I will sooner _destroy Voyager_ than allow the Kazon to use its secrets for conquest. Computer, Program Janeway-Chakotay 1." Just then the red alert klaxon sounded throughout the ship.

"_Auto-destruct sequence activated, one minute countdown. There will be no further audio warning. No code sequence will deactivate the countdown,"_ the computer announced.

"You're a madwoman!" Seska shouted.

"Maybe, maybe not. It won't matter in…50 seconds," Janeway replied nonchalantly.

Seska hit a communicator on her wrist, "Culluh, it's time for our second option. Janeway's going to blow up _Voyager."_

"Seska you have failed. You will regret this when you return. We have the life sign you indicated and are transporting her now," Culluh replied.

"What life sign?" Janeway asked.

"A special member of your crew. There's one more I need," Seska replied. While still holding the Kazon weapon at Janeway's head, she drew a second weapon from her coat and pointed it at Harry.

"Captain! That's!.." then Seska fired and twin bright beams came out of it and the young ensign vanished in a bright light.

"Gotta go," Seska waved good bye as the transporter beam took her from _Voyager._ On the bridge of the enemy ship she turned to Culluh, "We have got to get out of here. _Voyager_ is about to explode and it will take all of our ships with us if we don't!"

"Grr…very well, full retreat!" Culluh ordered. The view screen on the Kazon bridge showed their other two ships went to warp and then they too went to warp, the viewer switched to a rear view where they saw a large antimatter explosion.

TBC…


End file.
